Mr. Handyman buys Modern Welding's Stratford building

Keila Torres Ocasio

Updated 8:56 pm, Tuesday, August 12, 2014

Mr. Handyman, a home improvement contractor, Stratford-based Modern Welding's long-time Benton Street property. The $500,000 purchase of the 3,300-square-foot industrial building at 165 Benton St. marks the end for Modern Welding, which has closed its doors after 36 years at the site.
Photo: Contributed Photo

The home improvement contractor bought the welding service company's 3,300-square-foot industrial building at 165 Benton St. for $500,000. The purchase marks the end for Modern Welding, which has closed its doors for good after 36 years at the site.

It also marks the completion of Mr. Handyman's expansion into Stratford.

Mr. Handyman of Upper Fairfield County has been servicing the county from its Fairfield location since 2004. Last year, the company also began leasing a building on Bruce Avenue in Stratford, but it quickly outgrew that space. "We had limited parking and our business doubled this year," said Skip Wyatt, managing partner for Mr. Handyman. "And we do anticipate high growth."

Wyatt said it's the home performance sector of the business, which performs energy audits and upgrades, that has seen an uptick this year.

The move will allow the company to store its 28 production vehicles on-site. The Bruce Avenue location only has space for 10 cars.

The new location will also provide enough room to store energy-efficiency materials and space for employee training and offices. "I think it's a reflection of the health of our business," Wyatt said.

The property also includes 0.31 acre of vacant land adjacent to the building.

Brett A. Sherman, senior vice president at Angel Commercial, represented the purchaser and Jon Angel, president of Angel Commercial, represented the seller.